Spain rejects EU’s call for Kosovo recognition

MADRID – Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos rejected a call by the European Parliament on Thursday for all EU member states to recognise the independence of Kosovo.

"We respect their position, but we do not share it," he told a news conference in Madrid.

"We respect all the resolutions of the European Parliament but governments have their own opinion and Spain has its opinion," he said, noting that the "majority" of UN members have not recognised Kosovo's independence.

"There are 192 nations represented in the United Nations, I think so far not even 50 nations have recognised Kosovo," Moratinos said.

In a non-binding vote, the European Union deputies backed the call in an amendment to a wider bill on the breakaway Serbian province by 281 votes to 229.

Ethnic Albanian-majority Kosovo seceded from Serbia on 17 February 2008. It has so far been recognised by 54 countries, including the United States as well as most of the European Union.

The other EU members opposed in addition to Spain are Cyprus, Greece, Romania and Slovakia - either in solidarity with Serbia or so as not to create a precedent for their own separatist areas.